AIA leader: ‘The glass is two-thirds full’

Editor’s note: Tom Hysell is the 2014 president of the Minnesota chapter of the American Institute of Architects. The viewpoints expressed in this column are those of the author.

There’s no doubt that the architecture, engineering and construction (AEC) industry was the hardest hit sector in the Great Recession. The national annual revenue for architectural firms was robust at $44 billion in 2008 but fell to $26 billion by 2011.

Imagine a 40 percent decline in any industry — the impact for ours was significant, with major job losses and new architectural graduates opting to go into other professions out of simple necessity. Now, in 2014, the overall feeling in the architectural profession is one of “guarded optimism.”

As president of AIA Minnesota, I am constantly talking with firm leaders about how they are doing — right now and looking ahead to the future. Anecdotally, while a few architectural firms are still struggling, many firms are experiencing growth and hiring again and, reportedly, the firms that aren’t hiring are still profitable with a respectable work load. Every firm that is hiring is doing so both cautiously and deliberately.

My firm, Architectural Alliance, is part of a national group of 15 architectural, engineering and construction firms called the Global Design Alliance. During the past five years we have conducted a monthly “temperature check” to understand how each market sector (health care, higher education, workplace interiors, etc.) and how each region of the country are doing — for better or worse.

Since early 2013 we’ve seen a clear and marked month-by-month improvement in the volume of work across the country and an increased optimism for what the future holds. The glass is two-thirds full.

Ironically, the recession has managed to produce a great benefit for our clients and their workspaces. Corporations have been rethinking their approach to space needs and looking at ways to be more flexible and reducing the square foot per employee.

Architects have been able to respond to these needs in new and creative ways. We have rethought what our clients need and how we can serve them even better: How do we get more with less? How do we design better spaces that are more flexible? We have learned to reconfigure existing spaces that allows our clients to do their work more efficiently and effectively.

As in every profession, technology is making an incredible difference in how we do our work. In the AEC industry, we have replaced the computer aided design tools with Building Information Modeling. While CAD simply replaced the T-square with a computer mouse, both were drawing in two-dimensions. BIM is used to design a building in three dimensions from the start.

What architects can visualize in their minds can now be communicated clearly to the client, the design team and the contractor. Even better, as opposed to how we used to work by handing off, the computer model becomes a shared tool that the architect, engineers and contractors can work seamlessly together. And, the owners can use it for facilities management — they know exactly what was built.

Architectural Alliance is currently designing the renovation of the Target Center in Minneapolis. Right now, we are documenting the entire building by scanning it with lasers. With that information, known as the laser “point cloud,” we will have a computer model of the entire building that is accurate to a fraction of an inch.

What was only imagined as a possibility a short time ago is now reality. This bodes well for the future of a very collaborative and forward-thinking industry – you will see blended AEC teams that will be more innovative and responsive to client needs.

No doubt the recession was very difficult and painful for the AEC industry, especially for those who lost their jobs and had to leave the profession. But all in all, it was a catalyst for the architects to evaluate how to be more efficient and our clients have benefited from that. Architects are multi-faceted and our clients have learned that the earlier we can start working and planning together the better each project will be.

Tom Hysell is a principal at Minneapolis-based Architectural Alliance + 20 Below. He has led many high-profile projects including the United States Courthouse and Federal Building in Minneapolis, the Minneapolis Central Library (with Pelli Clarke Pelli Architects), the University of Minnesota’s TCF Bank Stadium and the current renovation of the Target Center. He has a B.A. from St. Olaf College and a Master of Architecture degree from the University of Minnesota. He can be reached at thysell@archalliance.com.